


Too Young

by Lotor_Loves_Me



Series: Lament [3]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/F, F/M, Fluff, Light Angst, Romellura, allurelle, plance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-10
Updated: 2018-12-10
Packaged: 2019-08-23 17:11:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16623026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lotor_Loves_Me/pseuds/Lotor_Loves_Me
Summary: The Castle of Lions is gone and the paladins are embarking on the journey to Earth.They stop at a festival, but little do they know that it could only get worse from there.





	Too Young

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry, this shouldn’t have taken me a month to write.
> 
> I was attacked on instagram by an anon who called me a slut and told me that I was worthless and stuff, and a few days after the account had been taken down, they somehow got ahold of my phone number.
> 
> I’m sure you can imagine how a situation like that might have taken a toll on me. 
> 
> But here I am, with some light plangst for all my gardeners- and the first straight ship of the series. 
> 
> It all goes downhill in this fic, you have been warned. ;)

One, two. One, two. One, two...

Pidge stepped slowly and lightly over the cobblestone path.

A bout of laughter bubbled up in her chest- she had never been one for clichés. Yet here she was, a small-statured girl, whose silhouette was outlined against skyscrapers by the blazing lights of the big city.

However her elation was quickly crushed, when she remembered why she was here.

~~~

They had landed on a planet similar to Earth. It held a compound of similar structure to oxygen, thus allowing the paladins to breathe regularly. Pidge exited Green, glancing fondly back at her large companion when the cat stood and closed her maw. Her yellow eyes twinkled.

Pidge smiled at the signature expression, and winked in return.

“Alright, let’s get this party starteeeeed!” Lance whooped, sprinting out of Red’s mouth and way ahead of the rest of the group.

He continued on, his long legs carrying him much farther down the leaf-strewn path, cheering and hollering all the way. Pidge laughed, and began to run after him.

The name of this planet was Urnkroix, which is pronounced like “urn-croy”. The natives, a race called the Kroixn, had invited the Paladins to a festival. Princess Allura had graciously accepted, and within dobashes, each lion had been landed in a beautiful forest clearing.

The environment resembled Earth’s season of Autumn, vibrant orange, red and yellow leaves everywhere. Even the grass beneath their feet was orange! Although, Pidge had a hunch that it was the same color all year round.

After she and the rest of the team had finally caught up to Lance, they stopped in front of a large bronze gate. For a few tics, they simply stared at the intricate metal work. Then Lance raised a hand to knock, but before he could, the Gate’s began to swing outwards.

They all stepped back, and were greeted by four people.

Two women, taller than Allura, rushed towards them, and stopped only feet away. They bowed. Allura bowed in return, but to her confusion, the two women were still bowing when she had risen. A third person, just shorter than Allura, proceeded to approach them. She had long, pin-straight red hair, that reached past her knees. The tips of two orange, fox ears poked out from atop her head, and a small tiara of glittering gems sat between them. Her nose twitched.

Shiro was the first to bow, Allura, Coran, then the rest of them quickly following.

The girl smiled.

“Greetings, Paladins of Voltron, and company. Welcome to Urnkroix! I am Queen Reiko, thank you very much for accepting my invitation.”

“A pleasure, Queen Reiko,” Allura greeted.

Reiko laughed, a short, cute, series of barks.

“Come, let’s get ready!”

~~~

They were given a brief tour of the capital before they headed to the castle, and were then escorted to individual rooms. Pidge had three attendants that were the Kroixni equivalent of her own age. One was Sylvina, who had a short white bob and bright orange eyes. She also explained that the female of their race were called Kroixni, and the males were Kroixno. The second was Toka, who had light green ringlets and fierce red eyes. The third was called Kyokia, and she had a head of golden curls, with deep violet eyes. The four of them got cozy rather quickly, and then they took Pidge out to hit the town.

They'd explained that the festival was more of a gala, and that they needed to go shopping anyways. The three girls were also to be Pidge's guards for the rest of the evening. They spent quite a bit of time in the town square, simply talking about all the technology in their city.

As the bright colors of day faded, Toka's phone-like circular device beeped. She pulled it out of her pants pocket and answered.

She turned back to them with shining eyes.

"It is time to get ready."

~~~

_Big lights..._

It took Pidge’s eyes a second to adjust to Queen Reiko’s garden’s lighting, without her glasses on. A rush of air breezes past her bare upper thigh. She’d practically forgotten what it was like to wear a dress...

She was guided carefully to the top of the stairs, the short slit up her left thigh allowing the skirt to move with her. Her back was left out in the open, two thin straps running straight over her shoulder blades and connecting to the v at her lower back. It was a sheath mini-dress, one that accentuated her petite form. And don’t get her wrong, she’d had her reservations about the deep, forest green dress, but the girls seemed pretty insistent on it. ‘It brings out the flecks of green and gold in your eyes,’ they’d said. And Pidge knew when she looked good in something. Besides, she wasn’t ten anymore, considering that little comatose-time skip ordeal, so Hunk who was down in the garden could take his disapproving-dad-frown and shove it.

Her hair had been straightened, half of it pulled into a cute topknot, the rest of it falling lightly, tickling her where it ended a bit below her jaw. A thin sterling silver chain ridden with little silver star charms sat lightly around her neck.

At the top step, already waiting, was Krolia. Krolia’s expression was guarded as the intimidating woman scanned over the crowd, scanning for potential threats. Pidge couldn’t blame her, she’d done the same thing when she was shopping around town.

Krolia wore a vintage-styled black cocktail dress that flaunted her figure. The loose wrap of the off-the-shoulder sleeves tightened at her waist, before flaring out into a looser open skirt that fell to her knees. Her hair was the same as always, just a bit glossier. Pearl-like beads adorned her neck, and really completed the look. Pidge could see the handle of Keith and hers Marmora blade peeking from the back. She stepped over discreetly and prodded it back in a little, where it was easily accessible but much more concealed.

Krolia smiled as Pidge sidled in besides her.

“You look great.” Krolia told her gently.

Pidge suddenly felt a little self-conscious. She was particularly eyeing Krolia’s sensible flats, in comparison to her own silver stilettos.

“This, well... isn’t really my style, but I _do_ like it...”

“It suits you.”

“Thanks! You look amazing too.” Pidge responded truthfully.

She was kind of riding high on the wind of praise when Romelle stepped up to them, slender body high-lighted by the fitted bodice of a light blue gown with a deep plunge, and satin sweeping the floor despite her beige wedges. Her hair was out of its usual style, all left down and curled into loose ringlets. Romelle looked a tad nervous, carefully watching her step in the unusual shoes, but it all washed away when she caught sight of them, rushing over, relieved to see familiar faces. The three made small talk as they waited on Allura, who Pidge bet was only taking so long because of her hair. Five dobashes later and the light click of pumps reached their ears. They all spun around, met with an almost unrecognizable Princess Allura.

Her beautiful white hair was completely straightened, shining and flowing like silk nearly down to her knees. Her figure was swathed in a white number that had the least fabric of all their dresses by far. It really seemed just like a shawl of some sort- luminescent, polyester-like cloth with long sleeves and a wide neck that barely counted as on-the-shoulder, plunging down into a v and held by a golden band at the waist. The skirt was asymmetrical and almost mirrored the top, meaning that the princess couldn’t very well do much more than walk, without flashing the attendants of the gala. Her three-inch, completely unnecessary pumps shined like molten gold.

A golden necklace sat around her neck and matching dangles swung daintily from her earlobes, hair swaying just as gracefully as she approached them. Compliments were rushed out, then cut off by loud trumpet-like sounds, heralding their arrivals. Together the four stepped down the grand stair case.

Pidge didn’t miss the subtle way Romelle’s hand had slipped into Allura’s, and she was willing to bet that Krolia caught it too, if the smirk on her lips was any indicator.

_People..._

Once Pidge’s heels had met the firm garden path, she and the women had been swarmed by noble Kroixn, many snobby and boastful. She was pleasant throughout the short introductions, but was nothing short of downright gleeful when she heard Lance call her name.

She’d apologized to the young, baby pink-eyed Kroixno who had gotten awfully close to her personal space bubble, and booked it in the red paladin’s direction. She barreled into him, placing her hands on his outstretched forearms to skid to a stop.

"Hey, Pidge," Lance started. "Why don’t we hit the dance floor?”

Had his voice wavered just a teeny bit? No, she was probably just imagining things. He was just trying to help her away from that crowd. Completely forgoing the fact that she didn’t quite know how to dance, she agreed.

"Sure." She shrugged.

_Rushing to grow up before you know..._

Her heart skipped four-point-two beats when she accepted Lance's hand.

With a grin brighter than the Sun, he lead her to the middle of the polished dance floor at the center of the garden. They had stepped on just as one song ended, so it was silent. Pidge could feel eyes on them. Whispers circulating.

Suddenly, the first beat of percussion dropped, and Lance tugged her sharply, causing her to fall flush against him. What with the height difference and all, her head was rested against the spot just by his bottom ribs and before his stomach, but she could hear his heartbeat all the same. And with one of his hands pressed and spread-fingered against her bare lower back, she swore her heart was racing five times faster than his, which seemed to be traveling at the speed of Red.

He swayed smoothly to the rhythm of the song, occasionally spinning Pidge out, or lifting their arms for the two of them to twist, with ease. He was as natural here as he was in the cockpit. She had been a little stiff at first, but naturally loosened as he eased her through the movements.

Pidge couldn’t figure out what to focus on. Her heartbeat? Her steps? His heartbeat?

She finally focused on the music. Something akin to a slow song. For her intense concentration on the string like sounds, she missed the glint of metal as a tense figure strode past.

_Stop signs, denied..._

She closed her eyes and allowed Lance free reign over her body, and listened to the calming, chipper tone of his voice as he explained something he’d read about the Kroixn.

_Everyone tells me I’ve gotta go slow..._

Pidge opened her mouth to share a detail about the planet’s natural green grass, when a strong female voice shouted:

“EVERYBODY DOWN!”

Startled the two paladins sprang apart, and Pidge found Krolia standing on a table, eyes trained on the sky. Pidge looked up too, just in time to notice a visible disruption of space above them. She squinted. Suddenly an entire fleet of Galran ships were upon them, their design unlike any they had faced in the past. Lance yelled for her to get to cover, since she held no weapons. But at the same time, a girl screamed. Pidge whirled around, a Kroixno held Queen Reiko against his chest with one hand, a jagged blade pressed to her throat. In his other hand, he held a rather large blaster, leveling it directly at Keith. Her eyes widened as she recognized the face of the Kroixno.

Her worries only grew when his unfamiliar, vibrant fuschia eyes met hers. A nasty smirk curved his lips. Krolia growled and whipped out her blade, already extended into a sword, but a Galran soldier dropped to the ground in front of her. Kroixn scattered, screaming, as more soldiers descended from the warships, each carrying weapons. Krolia began to fight off soldiers, who were forming a sea, making it impossible for her to reach her son.

Lance pulled his red bayard from the waistband at the back of his dress pants, forming his infamous sniper rifle. He moved into the fight, putting bullets through the heads of the soldiers. Keith was in a standoff with the infiltrator, his sword of the black bayard in hand, a scowl across his lips. Shiro crept up behind the Kroixno, holding a metal sword he’d been gifted by Allura for temporary use. He gave Keith a subtle nod.

Keith lunges at the same time as Shiro uses his sword to knock the blaster loose from the guy’s hand, using his long sword to flick the dagger away from the queen. The Kroixno growls, releasing the queen and scooping up his blaster, only to find a blade protruding from the point above his sternum. Shiro yanked his sword out. His mouth fell open as he gasped in pain and his blood began to spill. The glow of the Kroixno’s eyes grew brighter and with stiff movement he looked at something behind Keith and grunted.

“Victory, or death...” He pulled the trigger.

Pidge didn’t even think, as her legs moved.

_And it’s gonna hurt, sometimes..._

~~~

“Pidge!”

Surprisingly lean arms wrapped around her thin frame. Her body, now clad in a familiar, skintight, white bodysuit, was cold. She felt as if she had no connection whatsoever to her extremities. Her brain commanded her legs to move, but they did not obey. Pidge didn’t like that.

“Lance?”

The lean arms that everybody constantly called ‘noodles’ were suddenly crushing her.

“L...Lance!” She wheezed.

“Why would you do that?” He asked, his voice small.

_No matter what you do..._

Pidge took a minute as his grip loosened and closed her eyes. Vivid scenes flashed through her mind, every color popping and every sound amplified. Her heart beat accelerated with the chain reaction of events, racing dangerously when she took a powerful blast to the side of her abdomen. The vision went fuzzy when the charge exited from the other side, voices cried out and a tan blur raced towards her, finally going black as she fell to the ground.

_He was safe..._

“Had... to-” She mumbled.

“You didn’t have to! Pidge! You almost died!”

“ _You_ would have died if I _hadn’t_ taken the blast!” Her voice rose a bit as she tried to express her feelings.

“Then maybe you should have let me!” He yelled.

“Lance,” She took shaky steps to stand on her own. “W-why would you say th-”

“Because, Pidge,” Lance stepped back too, leaving his hands gripping her forearms to keep her steady, and releasing a tired sigh. “Because, somebody like you is important to the team.”

“Lance, you’re... i’m-”

“Let me finish.” He snapped. “Somebody like me, I’m expendable. Anybody can learn to use a gun, or be a distraction or bait or create a diversion for a ground team. Somebody like you, you’ve got a mind that comes once in a millennia. And you know how to use it. You can’t be replaced.”

“Lance,” Pidge cut in.

“No, don’t try to-”

“LANCE.” She shouted. He startled, eyes wide. “ _Nobody_ is ever replaced. Yes, under certain terms, they are expendable, but that’s heinous and immoral. A soul, an entirely unique human, cannot be replaced. Lance, you aren’t replaceable, and to us, you are NOT expendable. You may not feel it always, and that’s nobody’s fault- yet it’s ours all the same, for making you feel this way. But I promise you, and I’m not good with, erm, words and emotions... But, when you come into my room, late at night and joke with me, it helps, Lance. It distracts me from the big problems, it helps me unload, and every time, I end up falling...” She trailed off.

Lance quirked his lips with a smug little chuckle.

“HOLY SHIT! You’ve been doing that to make me go to sleep!”

Lance burst into laughter. His beautiful, light, freeing laughter. And despite having just been exposed to his masterful trick, she felt herself smiling too.

“Gods, you’re amazing.”

...

...

...

A brilliant heat ruptured and unfurled across the expanse of Pidge’s lightly tanned, fair skin as she diverted her eyes to the ground. Lance, however, did not react. She glanced back up. His eyes, suddenly cold, were trained on his feet.

“I’m glad you’re feeling better, and that I’ve been helping you sleep. But you don’t have to lie to me.” He turned, walking away.

“Wai- Lance!”

“Hunk was scheduled next for watch, so I’m sure he’s on his way. And it’s Lunch. I’m sure you’re hungry. Catch you later.” He said, without turning back. The door slid shut behind him.

“No, Lance, wait!” Pidge’s voice cracked loudly, but she couldn’t have cared less. The only thing that mattered to her in that moment wasn’t sitting down because her body was aching, or eating because she’d been stuffed in the pod for around two weeks, or finding her glasses which had been removed and placed on a counter in the med bay. The only thing that mattered was Lance knowing that he was invaluable, to the team, and more so to her. And she’d have to do something about it before it was too late.

“Hey, buddy!” The door slid open again. “Are you hungry? Where’s Lance?”

She searched for an adequate response but the only thing her mind came up with was to cry.

Hunk, fretfully scooped her up like a child and carried her on his hip out of the med bay as she cried, wailed, and whined about everything. They no doubt startled Keith in the hallway, who looked as if he’d never been in the presence of a crying creature and did not know what to do. Allura on the other hand gave Pidge a sympathetic look and rushed into the kitchen to bring out all of the dishes Hunk had prepared for lunch, as well as Pidge’s favorite- strawberry shortcake. Shiro took over for Hunk so that he could go and bring Keith, Lance, and Coran to the dining room- allowing Pidge on his lap, still sniffling.

He patted her back soothingly and whispered to her all his recollections of exiting the pod. However, he knew that the shock of her healing ordeal wasn’t what had caused this. He remembered one day, he’d come to ask her to repair a gadget she’d made for him, and found her passed out, slumped over her computer. He’d moved her to her bed, when she’d began mumbling. Most of it had been statistics and such, and it hadn’t surprised him that she’d been dreaming about scientific things. Matt did too. He’d been halfway out of the room, when he’d heard her say: “No, the nex... McClains... adopted... have childr... no... ance!”

He assumed that he and Hunk were the only ones that knew. But he also suspected that Allura might’ve caught on as well.

“You should see the way he looks at you.” Shiro murmurs.

Her sniffling ebbs away.

“Wh-what?” She hiccups.

He switches from patting her back to rubbing small circles. Hunk returns with an unusually dour Coran, and Keith. Keith’s eyes flicker over to her, and he cocks his head. ‘I’m fine’, Pidge mouths. She knows he doesn’t buy it, but he shrugs, grins, and sits at her and Shiro’s right. Shiro hands Pidge a small plate with a slice of the strawberry shortcake. She glances at him incredulously. Hunk snorts, lifting the entire cake, and leaning over the table to pass it into Pidge’s hands.

Shiro looks down at the petite girl in his lap, her small form exceptionally noticeable in the white suit. She folded her legs neatly and balanced the plate on top of them, grabbing a small fork and stabbing the cake with a giddy grin.

“Don’t even think about eating that whole thing.”

“You’re not my dad.”

~~~

Alarms.

Pidge sat upright, kicking off her covers. The white suit had been too comfortable to remove, so she’d settled for keeping it on. She slammed her hand on a button at the side of her bed, and a small crane arm extended from the ceiling, dropping her Paladin armor onto the floor. She pulled it on in a record eight seconds, grabbing her bayard and exiting the room, helmet tucked between her arm and still-sensitive side.

She pulled the helmet snugly onto her head and jumped onto the zip line, arriving in the hangar just before Allura. Hunk, Lance, Keith and Shiro came sliding in next. They took the lions and set course for a nearby system, where a section of the coalition was under siege. Pidge, piloting Green with her invisibly cloak activated, worked with Hunk to take down a Galra cruiser. Red and Blue easily swept through the ranks, incinerating the individual fighter pods. Down on the surface, however, they were also under attack. She landed easily, catapulting from Green. She extended her bayard and wrapped the hook a round a tree, using it to pull herself over an entire squad of Galran soldiers. She landed and retracted her bayard.

Determined fire grew in her as she tucked, making herself a smaller target for her enemies. She jerked and rolled around, avoiding blasts and blades, jabbing soldiers through the abdomen or cutting their legs and hands off.

“Lance!” She heard Keith shout.

She disposed of three more soldiers and turned in their direction, sprinting towards them.

Keith was fighting through a crowd of Galra to get to Lance and Allura. Of course. It was _always_ Allura.

Vibrant maroon painted the side of Lance’s face and neck. Allura suddenly hit the ground, and Lance unleashed a roar, his gun suddenly glowing and shifting, into... a sword. Keith faltered, then fought with renewed vigor as Lance charged into the fight, spinning and slashing like a whirlwind of fury.

Before they knew it, the immediate threat was gone. Shiro had helped Allura up, as the few ships and soldiers left scattered into the sky and forest. Lance wiped his sword clean and flicked the residue off his fingers and to the ground, then turned and walked back to his lion.

“Lance,” Keith called through the comms. “Lance, come in.”

“The battle’s over, I’m going back to camp,” No sooner had he said that, then Red had lifted from the ground, turned, and shot across the sky,

Keith’s brows furrowed, but they all returned to their lions and the camp.

“Hey, good job today, everybody. Lunch in thirty, okay?” Hunk cheerily congratulated them, before bustling towards the makeshift kitchen with Allura in tow.

“I must get back to the equipment in Black, I still have a few minuscule calibrations to adjust. Shiro, would you mind assisting me?” Coran asked.

Shiro gave a glance of uncertainty towards the Red lion, parked noticeably further away from the pride of alien warships, a dull hum in his gut telling him to stay, and go find Lance.

“Sure.” He caved, following the chipper man into his former lion. But then he pauses, and turns back.

“Pidge?”

She looks up, suddenly attentive.

“Would you go find Lance?”

“I... I’m not the person he wants to see right now.” She mumbles, looking back down at a small, sparking gadget, it’s wires wound around her lithe fingers.

The smoldering piece of unusual violet metal is pried from her restless fingers by Hunk.

“Maybe not.” He said gently, and her heart dropped. “But you’re the person he _needs_ to see.”

~~~

The natural organisms should have comforted her. She placed her hand against the leaf of a fern-like plant, accidentally allowing her subconscious to take over, shifting it into sword-shaped item, with jagged, razor-sharp edges. She hummed thoughtfully, turning the orange-purple blade over and over, testing its weight. It was nice.

She kept it as she trudged along, occasionally hacking branches out of her face, never before feeling so out of place amidst towering trees and petals and pollen spores the size of her fist. She wanted to scream at every noise that met her ears, but she couldn’t risk causing Lance to run off. Luckily, he left a trail. Tree after tree showed the agony of a warrior’s fury against its once rigid bark. She ran her fingers into some of the blade’s lines, feeling how cleanly he’d cut through the wood-like substance. She continued on, noticing that the sounds of the forest were somehow fading. She came upon a glimmering lake.

Lance was there, with the paladin armor’s black undersuit unzipped and rolled down to his waist and tied by its sleeves, standing knee-deep in the lake. As she crept closer, she realized small ripples were emanating from a point in front of him, yet he wasn’t moving. That meant... he was crying.

She couldn’t stop herself from moving. She’d only seen the boy cry once, when he’d apologized for not realizing Shiro was trying to talk to him in the astral plane. Though from what she could tell, he cried fairly often. He’d come out of his room late with pink eyes and puffy cheeks, a big smile lighting up his face to draw attention away from it.

She dropped all her armor soundlessly into the pillow-like, fine, green sand. She waded slowly towards Lance, the water strangely smooth and warm against her skin. And gently, she brushes her fingertips by the small of his back. Taking care for him to realize that she was there, but know that she meant no harm. His muscles tensed beautifully, relaxing slowly as she wrapped her arms around his waist, feeling the hot tears drip onto them.

After a few seconds of silence, Lance scooped some water up to splash it against his face.

“Sorry about that, I’m not sure what got into me. You can go and tell Keith that I’m done slacking off and I’m coming back soon.”

Pidge frowned.

“That’s not why I’m here, Lance.”

“Sure it is,” he snorted. “That’s the only reason anyone ever calls or sends for me. When I make a mistake, it could’ve cost the team everything. When I’m sick or tired or in pain, I’m just slacking off. When I’m sluggish in morning training, it’s all just: stop messing around, Lance- but do you _ever_ realize, that I’m trying my best? I’m not as talented as the rest of you. The only reason I’m here is because without me, you can’t form Voltron, and the only reason that I haven’t been replaced with somebody better is because we’re in the middle of a war and everybody we come across is trying to kill us!” His voice rises with contempt, his sardonic words echoing off the lake.

She hadn’t realized it, but tears of her own were now rolling slowly down her cheek, and then onto his back. He stiffened.

“Pidge..?”

“Lance, I’m so sorry. I knew you were hurting. I knew but I didn’t want to bring it up, because I didn’t know how to bring it up without being insensitive! But I know you feel like you can’t talk to any of us or confide in even me and you feel like you’ve been nothing but a buffer for our team and all this time I was TOO SCARED to say a DAMN thing. I avoided you or teased you relentlessly in ways that eventually led to you backing off or leaving me alone and all because I love you!”

In the silence that ensued, Pidge had let go of Lance. She backed out slowly onto the shore, not knowing what to do.

Lance turned to her and she froze. His eyes were indifferent and his face blank. Those aquamarine eyes twisted navy with turmoil.

“No, you don’t. It’s just some meaningless crush- a bundle of misinterpreted feelings influenced by our current predicament and shared experiences. It’ll fade.” He followed out of the water, pulling on his armor as she stood there in a daze, angry fumes rising within.

He hit the boosts on his suit, lifting off over the treetops and flying back to base camp.

She wasn’t too sure how long she stood there. She sat on the shore by her armor, ignoring the audible calls from her helmet. Dark red, dangerous-looking clouds had long-since rolled over the area. Now, where light pink liquid splattered against her cheeks, they burned. And she knew why, because her entire body was on fire.

Her eyes burned with unshed tears, and her body brimmed over with the sting of rejection.

_Rain drops, deep thoughts..._

Her mind replayed and replayed the moment, forever engraving the details into her mind. He’d called her feelings meaningless. And that hurt almost more than the rejection itself. To be told that you don’t know what you’re feeling, when you in fact do. And to have something like that told to you by someone you’ve been in love with for the past three years, it doesn’t feel great. Yet she didn’t feel terribly sad, sure she was upset, but she was mostly furious.

She felt that, rather than him not returning her feelings, he was blocking his own and hers as a result of his insecurities. And now she needed to do something to fix that. Because clearly, nearly dying for the boy wasn’t enough to get the idea across.

~~~

Hunk managed a superior salad at dinner, using Pidge’s new blade to finely dice a multitude of carrot and cabbage like vegetables. He even sanded a bit of the hilt of her sword, creating a sort of pepper.

Keith and Shiro had gone for patrol, and Coran had holed himself up in black tinkering with some of the salvaged castle equipment. Hunk was already preparing the following day’s food, stuffing the left over salad into strange blue tortillas made from some of the surrounding tree’s sap and it’s fruit.

Lance had holed himself up in Red, in order to avoid social interaction and lecturing by either Shiro, Keith, or the Princess. The lion had even gone as far for her paladin so as to activate her particle barrier.

Therefore, the Princess was the only person Pidge could go to. The Princess opened her mouth the instant Pidge reached her.

“This is concerning Lance, yes?”

Pidge recounted every moment prior, taking note of the many facial expressions Allura went through. The Princess eventually settled with a deep frown.

“I-I... did not realize that either of you felt this way. But to Lance’s point, are you sure that what you feel is romantic affection? You are quite young and... well, Lance is... Lance.”

“And what’s that supposed to mean?” Pidge bit, ever hostile.

“Oh, I did not mean to be condescending in any way, I-”

“Yes, yes you did.” Pidge stepped towards her. “You think I don’t know how I feel because I’m what? Too young? Too dumb? Just a kid? Newsflash, _Princess_ , age isn’t what validates somebody’s emotions! And I’m _not_ a damn kid. It’s true that I’m younger, yes; have less experience, yes; and still have things to learn, of course- but I know how I feel for him because I’ve felt this way for four years! So don’t you _dare_ try and tell me what _I_ feel!

“I... I did not realize he had been feeling this way. That is my mistake as Princess. I will go talk to him now.” She turned and plodded over to the Red Lion, Pidge in tow. She raised curled fingers. “Lance? May I speak with you? It is All-” She finally knocked.

Or... tried to. Her hand went straight through the barrier, which shimmered for a moment, then again, eventually disappearing, along with the Red Lion. Pidge narrowed her eyes at the small zing of pink electricity that circled Allura’s wrist.

“Wha-” She started.

“Hey guys! Wait, where’s Red?” Hunk arrived.

“A hologram.” Krolia cursed, pulling out the Marmora blades don’t scanning the tree line. “Keeeeeith!”

Within seconds Keith and Shiro broke through a collection of bushes, both of their blades at the ready. Keith and Shiro both surveyed the area for an immediate threat, before Keith swore. “Shiro, come on!” He, Shiro, and Krolia wasted no time clambering into Black.

Allura was already gearing up in Blue, and Hunk, determined, marched towards Yellow. Romelle was still at a loss when Hunk yelled for her to follow.

“Haggar...” Pidge snarled, laying a hand on Kosmo who was right besides her.

~~~

It took them four quintants to travel to where Allura had tracked the Red Lion. What awaited them was certain,y not what they’d been expecting. On the flat plateau of a dead planet, the Red Lion sat peacefully, surrounded by at least a dozen other. Pidge had nearly dove in guns blazing, but on Keith’s orders hovered invisibly nearby. Black, Yellow, and Blue touched down.The paladins exited their lions.

“Paladins of Voltron... ” Haggar greeted them with a sinister smirk. “How nice of you to join us... the Green Lion?”

“Off on a small errand,” Shiro deflected easily.

“Ah, I see. Well, that’s a shame. We have someone who’d very much like to see her.” She made a flashy gesture, and a random hole opened in the sky, depositing Lance.

Pidge’s breath caught in her throat and once more on a small signal from Keith, she held back. The moment Lance stood, Pidge could tell something was off. Lance stood a few inches taller, head held high and eyes closed, face relaxed and lips curved gently. His new height made his broad shoulders and long legs all the more noticeable. The Red Lion’s eyes glint, and Lance’s own snap open.

The blue of his eyes was corrupted by magenta, his smile curling into a sneer.

“How nice of you to join the party.” He drawls, rolling his head ‘round to look at the paladins before him.

He lets out a short chuckle, strolling leisurely forward. He reaches Keith, slowly lifting his hand and taking Keith’s chin between his fingers, and pulling upward to meet his eye. He clucked his tongue.

“Keith, Keith, Keith... some leader you are, putting your team in danger like this.”

“Lance, stop this! Don’t let her get to you!”

Pidge watched with baited breath, not daring to speak, even through the comms.

“Oho, and that, my paladins, is where you are mistaken. You’re Red paladin here... he came to _me_.”

“No.”

“Yes.”

“He wouldn’t!” Hunk shouted. “What did you do? Torture him to his breaking point? Tell him you had his family in your dungeon? Promise siege upon our planet? Feed him false images of his loved ones dying? He would never go to you of his own volition, because _we’re_ the only family he has out here, and the only hope of getting back to his!”

“Hm.. but from what I gathered you lot treat him like the runt. Any runt would seek the power to be seen, noticed, feared, respected and powerful!”

“Lance doesn’t feel that way! He- he would’ve told us! He would’ve told m-”

“You?” Lance cut in, voice sharp and cold. “When’s the last time I gave you anything but a “mission” report? You know, those little errands you send me on because I can’t _possibly_ fuck anything up? That’s right, Hunk. The last time I tried to talk to you was when Lotor was here, and all you did was cut me off, joke around about Allura, and then tell me that you and Pidge were busy. That was decaphoebs ago, before the entire quintessence field ordeal. So don’t think I need you now.”

“L-lance y-you don’t-”

“I don’t what, Hunk? I don’t mean it? I’m too dumb to think before speaking and I’m just saying things that I’ll regret? a news flash Hunk- what I regret is not doing this sooner.”

“Ah, the delicious irony.” Haggar laughs. “Would you like to dispose of them, Lance, and show them just how powerful you are?”

“With pleasure.” He smirked, and began to walk towards an open bit of space. His arm extended and he seemingly touched upon a solid surface. The air rippled, revealing a strange ship with a teludav mounted to an ion canon. “How would you like to be the first human to travel through a black hole, Pidge?” He looked upward and a bit to his right, eyes connecting directly with hers.

Then he winked.

She blinked. _Holy shit._

“GET TO THE LIONS!” She shouts.

They didn’t need to be told twice. Black immediately springs into action, snapping up Keith, and Shiro into his mouth.

Pidge thrust Green into a dive, shielding the remaining paladins from Galra blasters as they ran to their lions. Her cloaking wore off.

“The Green Lion is here! Red Paladin, destroy them!”

“Of course,” Lance’s voice somehow projected through his ship. “But one thing first.” He turned and fired his canon into Haggar’s squad.

“Get ready, there isn’t much time!” He yelled at them.

“Lance, what are you doing?!” Keith yelled, opening a channel to Lance’s ship.

“I’m sending you home. Protect our planet. Do what I couldn’t.” On screen, Lance let a tear escape. “Hunk?”

“Lance, buddy ple-”

“Tell my family I’m sorry. And Pidge- don’t be blue. Green is much more you.”

“Lance!” She screamed. “Lance don’t do th-”

He cut the connection. Pidge’s heart stopped.

The ship turned towards them and fired, but instead of purple, they were engulfed in white. Pidge’s helmet was filled with the shouts of the crew, and then, nothing.

Once she managed to open her eyes, she found herself faced with familiar blue and green.

_Oh, it’s gonna hurt, sometimes... No matter what you do! But I’ve got to fall to fly..._

~~~

_If I’m too young, to fall in love, why do you keep running through my brain?_

“Pidge, you gotta come out, it’s been two months now.”

“No, Hunk.” She grumbled, fingers pounding away at the keys.

“I didn’t want to do this, but...” There was a moment of silent, and then a loud crack of splintering wood.

“Wh- Hey! Put me down!” Pidge screamed, pounding and kicking Hunk.

“No.”

“Yes!”

“No!”

“YES!”

“NO!”

Hunk held her straight out in front of him.

“Pidge, you’re doing the opposite of what Lance wanted you to do.”

“Wants, Hunk. Wants.”

“Pidge, he isn’t coming back.”

“He is. He will. I’ll find him. We have the lions. No matter how long it takes, we will bring him back.

“Pidge, he didn’t want you to do this! He wants you to get out there! Keep living, discovering, inventing!”

“Stop putting words into his mouth, Hunk. All he said was ‘Don’t be blue’-”

“What? What is it?”

“Oh. My. Quiznak. We gotta go!”

“Go? I’m happy you’re getting out of the house but go where?”

“Allura!” She yelled, already flying out the door.

_If I’m too young, to know anything, why do I know that I’m just not the same?_

With the aid of Green, she was pounding on Allura and Coran’s door in less than a dobash.

“Pidge? How lovely to se-”

“Hey Allura, been a while, nice to see ya, gotta check Blue!” She yelped, pushing past the Altean and tearing through the house towards the backyard.

As her flying feet neared, the eyes of Blue shone, as the large cat reared back to roar, then kneeled and opened its mouth. Pidge never broke pace, the sound of her steps now echoing off metal. She passed the cockpit and went straight to the holding, skidding to a stop in the middle of the open space. A layer of dust resettled at her feet, and she instantly noticed where the dust had collected significantly less than other areas. Old footsteps. Larger than her own, and that of Allura’s.

She placed her own foot in those steps, following them to the storage closet space. She tugged the door open wide, coughing and waving dust away from her face. She felt her heart stop again.

“Pidge? What are y-” Allura had finally caught up, Coran, Hunk, and Matt- who had been fixing something for Coran- in tow.

“ _Oh, Katie!_ ” Matt whispered, rushing forward, catching his sister as she fell.

Allura’s gasp and Hunk’s shock was outweighed by the cries that left Pidge’s mouth. Her agony overshadowed Matt’s attempts at comfort as he held onto her tightly, his lips pressed into her hair and whispering: “Shh, shh, it’s gonna be okay”.

But it wasn’t. It’d never be okay.

_Don’t tell me I won’t, don’t tell me I can’t feel..._

“Black brought us he-” Romelle started, entering the space, closely followed by Shiro, Keith, and Krolia.

Pidge’s sobs intensified, taking only Keith by surprise. His eyes quickly fell upon the closet, and his own face paled. Krolia quickly offered an arm to steady her son.

“My god...” Shiro whispered, falling to his knees.

_What I’m feeling is real..._

She released the Blue Paladin helmet she’d clung to, twisting out of Matt’s arms and fleeing.

“Pidge!” Matt started to go after her.

“Don’t.” Hunk blocked him. “We should take care of this first. She needs space.”

Hunk padded over to the closet, hardly able to see through his tears. He gently removed the limp body within, too light despite the armor it wore. The body of Lance McClain.

~~~

_’Cause I’m not too young..._

Now at the top of Hero’s Tower, Lance’s favorite stargazing spot in the city, Pidge was surrounded by those she loved.

Her mother, father and brother. The Princess on Earth, her fiancée and her advisor. The head of Voltron, his badass mother, and cosmic space wolf. The Captain of the Atlas, his husband, and four prodigal students. The Yellow Paladin and his Balmeran girlfriend. They were all she needed, all she had, yet not all she wanted.

But her wants, her wishes, her dreams and hopes- they could not travel beyond the grave, outside of the realm of the living.

After she had connected the Blue Paladin helmet to the Red Lion- who’d returned in the middle of the night- together, they had all watched Lance’s final message. He’d told them what he’d been planning. He apologized for all the things he’d broken, all the times he’d fallen over in training. He apologized for letting them down, for being a burden, for all sorts of things that he should have never felt were because of him. He joked and jested for the Princess and Romelle. He’d told Shiro to take care of himself. He’d asked Keith to open up to people more, because not everybody was a bad person. He’d encouraged Hunk to comtinue being his cheerful self, and spreading happiness through his cooking and kindness. Left a short greeting for Shay. He’d told Coran to just keep being Coran. He’d asked Krolia to look over everyone so that Shiro and Keith wouldn’t strain themselves. He said hello to Cosmo, too. He’d left a short message for Matt. And to Pidge... he confessed his love.

Now, at the top of Hero’s Tower, the group stood, with small and sad smiles on their faces.

In each of their hands, a paper airplane.

The memories that helmet held, that _they_ held, that both the Blue and Red lions held- rested in their palms, and on their hearts.

Hunk and Shay were the first to say their goodbyes, before they launched their planes over the rail.

Next was Keith. He and his mother stepped up, both silently praying over their planes before releasing them. Cosmo nuzzled Keith’s leg.

Leifsdottir, Rizavi, Griffin and Kinkade gave tribute to a martyr they’d never met, but had heard great tales of. They gave their condolences and let the planes go.

Adam gripped Shiro’s hand tightly as the two watched their planes sail swiftly into the sky.

Sam and Colleen sent their wishes into the heavens, for the boy who’d protected their daughter in the most troubling of times.

Matt made a few jokes to lighten the mood, gaining a few giggles in the midst of all the sniffling, before he turned and flung his plane into the breeze.

Not leaving the rail, he turned and offered a hand back to Pidge.

Eyes followed silently as she stepped up.

“I love you.”

And she let it fly.

**Author's Note:**

> Hahaha, sorry about that. Not really, but I feel like it has to be said.
> 
> Hope you cried.
> 
> See you in the next update ;)))


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